[center][b]Brown fixes her mistake[/b][/center]

He looked at his two friends, the ones he’d called his family for the last fifteen years. They were standing beside him, ready to lay down their lives at any moment with the only objective of protecting their people. 

Kodo to his right, a man of short stature by all means, but whose presence radiated strength and breathed new hope into a soldier’s soul upon entering the battlefield. His face was disfigured, missing a nose and with numerous claw-like scars along it.  He’d gotten those scars a decade ago; Vobom remembered that day like it was yesterday. That was the day Kodo truly became his brother after they both faced a legion of Shadows on their own.

To his left was Ral, a woman, taller than him and Kodo but slender and beautiful like an angel. She had many pretenders, but to Vobom she was just like a sister. A very stubborn one. She’d been his friend for as long as he could remember. She’d been with him all along, and she was also the only one he knew with whom he could reminisce about the good old days in which they were kids back in Wheat Village, the first Village to be devoured by the Beast. Over the years Ral had learned strange things. Occult magic; and she’d also made connections with people who Vobom would rather forget. But she did it all for this.

And just like that, he noticed them both looking back at him. A sad smile on Ral’s elegant face and a battle-hardened scowl on Kodo’s. Of course, after years of knowing the guy, Vobom knew that the way his upper lip was trembling meant that he was conflicted. He knew all about Kodo’s inner conflict. They all did, because they had been going through it for all of their lives.

Vobom took a deep breath and ran a hand over his face, feeling the small scars he’d obtained over the years of fighting the Beast, feeling each one send a shiver down his spine. 

It had all lead to this. In the next couple of hours, the fate of [i]everything[/i] they knew would be decided.

------------

It had been long enough. Enough with the tracking, enough with the spying, enough. She had finally tracked the beast to an exact location and, after lighting her way through thousands of its Shadows, was now about to finish what she started all those years ago.

With a flick of her wrist, her usual dress, torn from the years of constant fighting, shifted and was replaced by a very peculiar attire. One that seemed so well  crafted and made that the very dust in the air seemed to be respectful of it, not daring to settle on it. It was an attire so perfectly crafted, that possibly only the Goddess Ilunabar could have been capable of making it. The attire consisted of a top with long, loose and white silken sleeves, a pair of dark brown pants, a bit darker than Brown’s own brunette hair, a pair of mid-calf high boots perfect for both kicking in kneecaps and walking for years at a time and finally, a half-length white skirt to go over the pants.

It was an attire gifted to her while meeting with both Goddesses over the matter of her near death. It often felt like that meeting was a lifetime ago, and she hadn’t used neither the jewelry or the attire once, in respect to their creators. Now, it was an important occassion and she’d need the aid of the magic-enhancing jewelry. A ring and a brooch. They seemd small and inconsequential, but Brown was sure they’d allow her to put up a fight.

She looked around one last time, noting the burn homes and the charred remains of what might once have been human families. That was all about to end.

So she gave a step, then another one and before she knew it, she’d reached the place where she was defeated. The ground had recovered somewhat, becoming a canyon of sorts. Tree roots as thick as a home, originating from the Deepwoods nearby, went out one side of the canyon and into the other, making rough bridges and allowing all kinds of critters to make their homes in the relatively new geographical location.

After a bit of looking, she found it. The very epicenter of the last strike. The crater had been covered by grass, and a tree, strong and beautiful was growing right in the center- A tree that sent shivers down Brown’s spine. She could [i]feel[/i] the magic in the air, she could [i]touch[/i] it. It was invisible to the naked eye, but to her, the entire crater slowly turned into a magnificent dance of colors and tastes and scents. And they all originated from the tree.

Compelled to know more, she started walking towards the gentle, beautiful plant. Then she jogged, and then she was right next to it, pressing her ear against it.

Of course, she heard nothing, but she didn’t have to hear anything in order to understand. 

This was the one seed that she’d managed to save from being devoured by the Beast, back when this all began.

Brown sniffled bac k a tear and smiled. “I wish Astarte could see this,” Brown said softly, purposefully blocking Astarte from reading her actions and seeing through her. It was a good thing that her Goddess allowed her to retain some free will, she guessed.

There was no time to focus on beauty and magic, as the environment was quick to change. For a moment, the magical aura vanished, and the grass wilted and when Brown turned around, there it was.

Tall as three Urtelem, with skin blacker than the darkest shadow and a gaping maw lined with a thousand sawed teeth, devouring the soul of anything it came across. Anything it touched turned to ash.

It recognized her. 

“Do you even have a name anymore, or are you simply a Beast, as the humans say?” Brown asked, adjusting the copper ring on her right middle finger.

No answer but a soulless glare. The afternoon turned to dus kas they looked at each other. None of them knew how long it had been since they last fought, but they also knew that such good enemies were hard to find, and had to be respected.

Finally, Brown spoke again, “It was my mistake allowing you to guide me through the Deepwoods, and I own up to my defeat shortly after-“

The Beast grunted and began to move into the crater, but brown held up a hand, “Stop! We’ll fight elsewhere... This place is important to me, to my Goddess...”

The beast set one of its paws in the crater, and at that moment, Brown felt the aura of magic grow again, coming from the tree. Brown grunted at this and saw the Beast recoil back once the aura of magic touched its paw.

She understood what she had to do in order to beat the Beast.

She turned around to face the tree and immediately activated the ring. A bubble encased the entire tree and herself, made of her own magic. The Beast roared and crashed against it, shaking Brown’s concentration. She then put her hands up against the tree and started siphoning Astarte’s strength and putting it into the very tree. In a matter of seconds, the Tree had grown from being noticeably large, to over fifty meters in height and seven in diameter. As such, the bubble was beginning to wear thin, and with one final charge, the Beast broke through.

The ring blew up at that moment, leaving, brown’s finger cracked and broken. Still, only a grunt of pain was what the Beast heard before being blasted back by Brown.

Her hand burned up and she saw cracks slowly reappear along her skin. It was an effect of forcing herself to use magic around the Beast, she concluded. Then she noticed that those cracks stopped growing and felt the Tree lend some of its powers toward healing her injuries. 

Good as new, she chuckled and nodded at the Tree.

Getting up from eating dirt a few dozen meters away, the Beast watched as Brown approached, uninjured. It roared and out of the shadows of the blades of grass, out of her very shadow, thousands of Shadows emerged. At once, they all charged.

--------------------------

“So, let’s go and finish this, my friends, no Gods will step in for us now,” Vobom said and both Ral and Kodo nodded.

Then they saw it, a flash of lavender colored light, bright enough to blind them if they were only a bit closer, came from the Canyon of Shadows. 

They looked at each other and then ran towards the source. Ral holding her talismans, Kodo his trusty enchanted battleaxe, and Vobom his Father’s spear, blessed by Tounic craftsmanship.

What they saw upon reaching open ground left them breathless. A single woman was beating back an entire army of Shadows and was slowly making her way to the Beast.

“No time to lose, let’s help her!” Ral yelled and ran towards the battle, forcing Vobom and Kodo to do the same. The closer they got, the more details they could see, from the pale skin of the woman to her impossibly beautiful attire and lastly, her [i]magic[/i]. Nobody but Ral was supposed to be able to use magic of any kind in the presence of the Beast.

Then they arrived at the battle, flanking the Beast. Still, it was no surprise as the Beast turned around and smacked Kodo away. With a sickening crack, Kodo was sent flying towards a hill. Then, as Ral cast a spell of light on the area to vanquish the Shadows, Vobom threw his spear at the Beast. 

It held up a paw to block it and to its surprise, the Spear went clean through its paw and into its eye. Past its skull and through its brain.

In a split moment, it fell onto the ground, dead. 

--------------------

Brown had to use some of the magic reserved in the brooch to push off the mayority of the Shadows, but after that simple light magic was enough to open herself a path to the Beast. A swipe of her hand and a hundred Shadows were vanquished. A flick of her wrist and the Shadows were pushed back. 

But then she saw the humans. Average humans, running in to help her fight. What were they doing?  When the first one was smacked away, she flinched. The distraction allowed a shadow to slash at her arm. She responded with a grunt and more light magic. 

Then the Shadows froze, and Brown saw the Beast go down, spear lodged in its skull. And brown saw the relief in the humans’ faces. She also saw how their smiles turned to wide eyes and shaking legs when they noticed the Beast using a paw to take the spear out of its head. The spear fell onto the ground and the humans froze.

Brown tightened her fists and jumped over to the humans, landing between the two. She extended her hand towards the spear and brought the weapon towards her hand, then gave it to the man, ignoring the small cracks appearing along her arm. “Take care of the shadows.” She said and again used the brooch’s reserves to blast the Beast away.

This time it was prepared and was only pushed back a few inches.

Out of nowhere though the short man jumped into action and buried its axe in one of the Beast’s back legs, warranting another smack away. Taking advantage of the distraction, Brown launched herself at the Beast and let loose all of her magical energy reserves, making the brooch break in the process. The blast this time obliterated everything in its path, and when it subsided, a charred Beast was left in its wake.

It didn’t move.

So Brown sighed in relief and helped the humans clean up the rest of the Shadows and healed the short one, who had kept fighting despite having six ribs broken. 

“... Who are you?” Asked Vobom.

“I’m just someone looking to correct her mistakes.” Brown said and looked at the Beast, sighing.

“You...” Ral began, confused, but then her pupils narrowed and her brow furrowed, “You’re messing around with us, not a good time for those games, witch.”

“Well, if anything I’d say Belruarc is the witchy one out of the two of u-“ There was a crack and a wheeze, “Wait, is that-“ 

They all looked at the Beast and saw it standing up, old charred skin being replaced with new skin. Kodo fell to his knees and both Vobom and Ral nearly cried at the sight.

Brown, though, stared at each of them and nodded, “I’ll defeat him this time, but I need your help,”

“Anything, quickly!” Ral said and Brown put her hand on Ral’s shoulder, infusing her body with as much power as she could hold.

“You three, go to the big magical Tree and protect the woman at all costs. Woman, put your hands against the Tree and just hold that position, I’ll bring the Beast to you and we’ll beat him there.” Brown wasted no more time and ran toward the shambling Beast, while the humans made their way to the Tree. The moment that Ral pressed her hands against the Tree, it started growing bigger, but another thing was also happening—Something was shifting inside the very trunk. 

Meanwhile Kodo and Vobom stared wordlessly at the display of sheer power by Brown. She was firing blast upon blas of pure magic at the Beast, pushing it around like a toy, until something happened. 

She felt as if her insides were being squeezed and torn apart, and she saw cracks beginning to appear along her body again, like that time long ago. The pain made her falter, and the Beast took this moment to lunge at Brown. It knocked into her full force and they both tumbled along the ground. After a few meters, Brown desperately disentangled from the Beast and looked at her hands, seeing them shift and blur before her very eyes. She didn’t have much power left, she realized.

After a minute, Ral realized what it was that was shifting inside of the tree trunk as a passage opened and led her into the middle of the trunk, into what seemed to be a huge room.

At that moment, seeing how little hse had left in her, Brown looked up and muttered an apology. Then, as the Beast lunged at her, she put her hands on its body.

Ral was thrown back out of the room when Brown and the Beast appeared in it, the Beast mauling Brown and her desperately firing weak blasts of magic until one hit the mark, right through the Beast’s neck and severing its spine.

“H-help me, human woman, Ral!” Brown cried out and Ral rushed to help her stand. Then Brown guided her to the entrance to the room and the Beast recovered. “This is how we defeat it, thanks to the three of you, this plan had a chance of succeeding... The tree’s magic itself won’t allow the Beast to even move, once we seal the chamber.”

“Really? How do we seal the chamber, then? It’s healing already!” Ral pointed at the Beast, which was once more standing up.

“A sacrifice must be made to seal the chamber, my beautiful. Go with your comrades. Please” Brown said softly, not daring to move much. Her whole body was cracked and resembled more some sort of ghost than a person. 

Brown could see Ral frown, but before she could protect, she used pushed her out of the tree and pressed her hands against the walls of the cramped tunnel. Then entrance was immediately sealed, yet Brown could hear Ral scream to be let in. Next, before Astarte could feel the Beast getting close, she sealed the entrance to the chamber with a thick door made of the tree’s own wood. She could hear the screams and roars of anger and fear as the Beast drew away from the walls and retreated. The Tree’s magic either scared it or hurt it, Brown supposed. 

And that moment was when she noticed herself fading. She felt tears escape her eyes and sobbed, her chest feeling sudddenly empty, and her soul a mere speck of dust, about to be blown away.

So, she decided, instead of letting the wind take her away, she’d dedicate her last action to making sure the Beast stays locked away. She pressed her back against the door she’d made just a mere moment ago and felt herself fusing with the Tree, becoming a part of the chamber that was meant to lock away the Beast for the rest of eternity. 

And her last thought before disappearing, [i]‘Please, take care of yourself, Astie...’[/i]

[hider=Might Summary]
[b]Astarte – L6 – 50 MP – 10 FP[/b]
Brown siphoned 10 Might from Astarte to accelerate the Tree’s growth to help her fight the Beast.

Brown siphoned 5 extra Might to allow Ral to make the Tree grow more and create the containment chamber itself, creating the Holy Site named the Great Tree, worth 15 MP.

Brown used 5 Might to fight the Beast with pure magic, overcoming the magic negation with pure brute force.

Brown used 1 FP to merge with the Great Tree.
Remaining: 30 MP, 9 FP[/hider]

[hider=Summary]
-	Vobom, Ral and Kodo, small time heroes from the villages devoured by the Beast, seek to destroy the beast once and for all. Battle location is south-eastish of the Deepwoods, exactly i nthe palce where Brown was first defeated.

-	Brown gets ahead of them and begins the battle, having helped the Great Tree grow a few dozen meters.

-	Along the battle, Brown uses up the jewelry Ilunabar gave her and ends up using so much of her own magic that she breaks her body and soul. With the last of her strength, she seals the Beast inside the Great Tree and merges with the Tree itself, as to not let herself be whisked away.[/hider]